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Posts Tagged ‘Jean’

My guest blogger today is Jean Holewa from Simply Squirrel Food. Be sure to stop by her quirkly blog to read more about the mayhem behind social media madness!

Is it just me, or is a lot of the stuff people post on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter…simply nuts?

I remember the day I first set-up my Facebook account. At that time, there was a blank white box that was prefaced with the words “Jean is”. I stared at it for a few minutes wondering just what it wanted me to say. Since I’ve always subscribed to the “honesty is the best policy” philosophy I entered “eating a banana”. Boy, oh boy, did I hear about that from my then college-aged daughter. The exchange, along with dramatic eye rolling, went something like this: “Really Mom, really? You are so embarrassing!” I smiled sheepishly and quietly suggested that surely there must be things even more embarrassing that I could’ve posted.

Now, several years later, I have seen far too many updates that have made me cringe in embarrassment for the poster. Don’t get me wrong, I’m really not a prude and have a pretty good sense of humor, yet more times than I wish, I find myself scratching my head at some of the things people post. Don’t they realize how negatively their updates can reflect on their otherwise carefully crafted image? Why do people seem to pay more attention to how they look in the pictures they’re tagged in than what they choose to share in their status updates?

The fact that Facebook originated on college campuses and is now part of mainstream America has to be the basis for a lot of the confusion. Whether we like it or not, most of our college-aged sons and daughters engage in behaviors considered totally normal within their peer groups, but with full understanding that Mom and Dad wouldn’t approve. But like my daughter, Facebook has now moved beyond the college scene to encompass other parts of life. Even she knows her old Facebook behaviors won’t play so well these days. When I was reluctantly granted ‘friend’ access to her page, I questioned why many of her photos had been oddly cropped cutting off her right hand. Petulantly, I was informed that she was carefully protecting her image by cropping out her beer! Well…I guess that’s a start!

But it isn’t just our younger people who seem to be confused about what is appropriate and what isn’t. I attribute that, in part, to the prevalence of reality TV where outrageous behavior is the norm. People seem to say whatever they want on these shows with very little regard to the consequences. Add in the divisiveness and acrimony so many people feel about politics these days and it’s easy to see how the boundaries got so blurred.

Social media is here to stay. It is a marvelous way to connect and re-connect across generations and from all parts of life. Simply remembering good manners and recognizing boundaries between personal and public information will keep it pleasant and fun for all. And if you’ve seen some of the crazy things like I have, you just might chuckle when someone new to Facebook posts something so embarrassing like “I’m eating a banana”.

Thank you Diane for the invitation to write a guest post. I appreciate the opportunity to introduce myself and Simply Squirrel Food to the followers of It’s All Good Until You Burn Dinner.